The proposed research will deal with the taxonomy and host-parasite relationships of an extensive collection of chiggers, with related host material at the Bishop Museum. Distribution of vectors of chigger-borne rickettsiosis and agents of chigger-caused dermatitis will be investigated, as many of the specimens in the collection were taken from hosts and localities not previously sampled. In conjunction with this study, a glossary of terminology will be compiled for the larval Trombiculidae. A type catalogue will be compiled for the National Chigger Collection of the U.S. National Museum of Natural History.